1. The Cold War Begins

2. Paranoia & Strategy
Why couldn’t the US and the USSR just fight each other in a traditional war?
How do you fight an ideological war?
What spheres of society might this Cold War have been fought in?

8. The Global impact of WWII
World War II was a global conflict whose destruction was unparalleled; as many as seventy million people died and much of Europe and Asia lay in ruins
German, Italy, and Japan were occupied and turned into democratic nations.
United Nations
The League of Nations had proved to be a failure
Churchill and Roosevelt decided to launch a new international peace-keeping organization in 1945, known as the United Nations (or U.N.)
The UN established its purpose to maintain peace in the world, while encouraging friendship and cooperation.
Members agree to give up use of force, except in self-defense.
The UN also seeks to eliminate hunger, disease, and ignorance.

11. Two Super Powers Emerge
Following their victories in World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as the world superpowers
Their different philosophies led to an intense Cold War that would dominate international affairs
Soviet Union (USSR):
Communist, Totalitarian
Vast large red Army
United States:
Capitalist, Democratic-Republic, Bill of Rights
Developed the Atomic Bomb and used it in WWII

12. Revisiting Yalta
At the Conference at Yalta Joseph Stalin (USSR) & Franklin D. Roosevelt discussed how post-World War II Europe would be split.
Eastern Europe would become Communist Soviet Satellite Nations. Eastern Germany was made part of this.
Western Europe would be Capitalist & Democratic. Western Germany was made part of this.
Despite its Eastern location, Germany’s capital Berlin was split likewise.
Because of the great ideological differences between communism & capitalism/democracy, the dividing line would be stark

13. Division of Germany
Following WWII, Germany was split into 4 zones of occupation.
France, Great Britain, and the United States controlled the Western half of Germany- All were Capitalist Democracies
The Soviet Union controlled the Eastern half, bringing to it Communism
The Capital of Germany, Berlin, was split in the same way, even though it was completely within the Eastern half of the country
This split came to symbolize the split of the world during the Cold War

15. “Cold War”
After World War II, each Superpower attempted to extend its influence, quickly leading to a “Cold War”—emerging first in Europe and then in Asia, Latin America, and Africa
The Cold War was “cold” in the sense that neither Superpower ever confronted one another directly in open warfare.
However, their global competition led to crises and conflicts on every continent, dominating world events for the next 45 years.

16. Roots of the Cold War
The roots of the Cold War lay in the competing ideological systems of the Western democracies and Soviet Communism.
Western nations hoped to spread democracy and free enterprise (capitalism)
Soviet leaders promoted the spread of Communism.
An organization known as Comintern (Communist International) was formed by the Soviets to spread communism across the world

18. Eastern Bloc/ Iron Curtain
Stalin never kept his promise to hold free elections in Eastern Europe
He believed the Soviets had the right to control Eastern Europe to act as a buffer to protect Soviet security.
Communists came to power in all the Eastern European nations
The Eastern European Communist Soviet Satellite Nations were completely submissive to the wishes of the Soviet Union.
From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent. – Winston Churchill “The Sinews of Peace” speech, Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri, March 5, 1945

20. Growing American Involvement
The United States was the only country powerful enough to resist the Soviet Union and the spread of Communism
Containment
The clearly stated goal of the US and its allies was to contain Communism to where it was and prevent it from spreading anywhere else
Truman Doctrine
US President Harry S. Truman offered to support all free peoples resisting Communism. This was the Truman Doctrine
Marshall Plan
Based on the theory that countries fell to communism when they were faced with intense economic hardship, the US embrace the Marshall Plan
This plan gave billions of dollars in financial aid to Western European nations in an effort to help them rebuild war-torn economies and avoid the economic situations where communist uprisings thrived
The US put this policy into action when they gave economic aid to a struggling Turkey and Greece to help

22. Berlin Airlift
In 1948, the Western allies to the first steps to merge their zones of occupation in Germany
Stalin immediately sought to test how far he could push the United States in this new Cold War.
He blockade East Berlin from all sides allowing nothing in. This was his attempt to take Soviet control of West Berlin.
In a move that defined the Cold War, the US & Allies responded by flying supplies into West Berlin and dropping them to the citizens to help feed and supply them
Defeated, Stalin soon reversed his blockade policy.

24. West & East Berlin
In 1949, the three Western zones of occupation were officially merged into a new independent state, known as the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany).
Stalin responded by turning the Soviet zone into the German Democratic Republic (East Germany)

25. Formation of NATO & the Warsaw Pact
In 1949, the US, Canada, and ten Western European countries formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to protect Western Europe from Communist aggression.
With NATO, the United States pledged to defend Western Europe with its nuclear weapons
Soviet leaders responded in 1955 by creating the Warsaw Pact with their Eastern European allies.
When Hungary tried to drop out from the Pact, Soviet forces moved in to crush the uprisings.

27. Revisiting Containment & Domino Theory
The US’s strategy in the Cold War was containment:
They would accept Communism in the countries it already existed. However, they wanted to contain communism so that it did not spread to any other countries.
This went against the Soviet Union’s desire to spread Communism Internationally.
The US believed in the Domino Theory: That if one country falls to Communism, similar countries around it would also fall to communism.

29. Arms Race